Colorado economic development office gets creative

State approves four film projects and six creative districts

Colorado's film incentive fund will receive a fresh infusion of $3 million from the state July 1, but producers already have lined up to claim more than a third of that money.

The Colorado Economic Development Commission on Thursday approved spending rebates worth $1.65 million for two feature films, a documentary and a commercial. Of that amount, $1.23 million will come from the next round of funding.

Earth Vision Film, a Boulder-based documentary filmmaker, received approval for $154,122 in spending rebates for a documentary on climate change titled "Life Tectonic." The company plans to hire a dozen people and spend $776,010, mostly on post-production work, although some scenes will be shot in the state.

Earth Vision was behind "The Cove," a 2009 documentary on dolphin slaughter in Japan that won international recognition. It also made "Chasing Ice," a documentary about melting glaciers. Life Tectonic represents a follow-up to that effort.

"It has taken a while for us to get on their radar," said Lauren Sloan, deputy director of the Colorado Film Commission.

"Black Lung," a supernatural thriller set in a coal-mining town, was approved for $1 million in rebates tied to $5 million in Colorado spending, including the hiring of 62 crew members and 25 cast members in the state.

Chase Palmer, who wrote the screenplay, will also direct the feature film which is scouting mine locations in Trinidad and Clear Creek County, Sloan said.

Other film incentive awards included $46,632 for spending on a commercial for University of Colorado Health and $216,053 for a family-friendly feature from Wrecking Ball Pictures titled "Different Folks."

The film, made in conjunction with Disney subsidiary Freeform, formerly known as ABC Family, is about a girl who envies her neighbor and wishes she could join that family but soon learns things aren't as they seem.

Also on Thursday, Colorado Creative Industries and the Boettcher Foundation announced the creation of six new creative districts under the state's Creative Districts Program.

The certification, which lasts five years, includes an official state designation and a negotiated award package with $40,000 in benefits that can include financial support, technical assistance, advertising and marketing support, CDOT highway signs and leadership training.

The six new creative districts were chosen out of 15 applicants and will join a dozen existing districts that have formed since legislation was passed in 2011 to create the designation. The districts are intended to attract artists and creative entrepreneurs, showcase cultural and artistic organizations and events, create economic hubs and help revitalize communities.

CCI director Margaret Hunt told the commission that job growth rates in creative districts are running at 5 percent versus the 2 percent average statewide, and a related program is helping develop living spaces for artists.

She also said her office has raised the bar on whom it will accept for a district designation, with an emphasis on rural areas.

Article Comments

We reserve the right to remove any comment that violates our ground rules, is spammy, NSFW, defamatory, rude, reckless to the community, etc.

We expect everyone to be respectful of other commenters. It's fine to have differences of opinion, but there's no need to act like a jerk.

Use your own words (don't copy and paste from elsewhere), be honest and don't pretend to be someone (or something) you're not.

Our commenting section is self-policing, so if you see a comment that violates our ground rules, flag it (mouse over to the far right of the commenter's name until you see the flag symbol and click that), then we'll review it.